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Kur Teng made three of Michigan State’s 11 3-pointers before scoring a career-high 15 points, and the 17th-ranked Spartans beat No. 12 Kentucky, 83-66, Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden in the opening game of the annual Champions Classic.
Jaxon Kohler made two shots from beyond the arc to finish with a team-high 20 points, and Trey Fort scored 13. Michigan State (4-0) made half of its 3-point attempts after entering the game shooting 21.7 percent from long range — fourth-worst among 361 Division I programs — with just 14 total through its first three games.
Kicking the ball inside and capitalizing on second chances, a much more familiar recipe for coach Tom Izzo’s group, also worked. The Spartans overwhelmed Kentucky 42-28 and never led by less than 10 after Teng’s fadeaway jumper from deep in the corner with 2 seconds left in the first half.
Coen Carr threw down one of his trademark dunks on an alley-oop early in the second, and Michigan State held off some Kentucky runs and expanded its lead to 20 and beyond in the final minutes.
The Wildcats (3-2) started fast and led 5-0 early before coming off the field ice cold. They were 8 of 29, including 4 of 15 from 3-point range, in the first half en route to a second loss in three games.
Otega Oweh led Kentucky with 12 points, while Denzel Aberdeen, Collin Chandler and New York native Mouhamed Dioubate scored 10 each.
Kentucky point guard Jaland Lowe missed his fifth straight game to open the season. He is out indefinitely after dislocating his right shoulder during an intrasquad scrimmage last month.
To be continued
Michigan State: Hosts Detroit Mercy Friday night.
Kentucky: Hosts Loyola Maryland Friday night.
